She was so sexy, even covered in bruises and bandages. I loved the way she spoke. There was a rhythm. It was poetic, almost. I nodded, and offered to help. I slid a pair of loose shorts over her long legs and pulled a giant t-shirt over her head, guiding her arm through the sleeve and back into the sling.
Before I could look up, her lips were on mine, and her fingers tickled my jawline at their touch. At no point did I want to pull away, no matter how much I’d love to say that I was able to overcome my desire for her. As all things do, our kiss ended. She took a step back and allowed me to catch my breath.
“Time to talk?” I asked.
“Yes, it’s time to talk. Do you want to sit down?”
“Sure.”
We moved to the edge of her bed and each lowered to the mattress. Grace immediately bounced back up to her feet.
“What the hell did you do to my apartment, Ryan?”
Grace
“Are you kidding me?” He screamed.
He seemed stunned at my outrage. It may have been a little out of left field, but I had been holding it in for quite some time. I know I was not blameless in all of this, but he had promised not to break into my apartment anymore. Did he just forget that?
“No I’m not kidding. Were you looking for something? Did you think I was hiding something from you?”
“Obviously you were.”
“Oh, don’t start with that.”
“Don’t start with that? That’s exactly where we should start. When did you figure out who I was?”
Flashes of my mother raced through my mind. I tried to shake the image. “When I saw your tattoo.”
“So practically from the moment you met me?”
“Not at all. And no. I recognized your tattoo, but it wasn’t until after you left that I put it together.”
“You still kept that from me for an entire week.”
“I tried to push you away.”
“Oh God. That’s what that was about? So what, when you realized you couldn’t do that you sent your family to do us in?”
“Ryan, no. No, please don’t think that. I had no idea what they were going to do.”
“And yet you just happened to be there.”
“Exactly! Do you think my father would allow me to be near a place that he was planning on blowing up?”
Ryan stood. I knew this was a tough subject. The fact of the matter was that we were just mixed up in this awful business. We shouldn’t be having this fight because we never should have met. Still, for my own rationality, I needed him to know that I didn’t set him up.
“From what I’ve heard of your father, he’s pretty ruthless.” He started.
“He would never hurt me.”
“Is that what your mother said?”
“What—?” I stepped back. What was he trying to say? What did that even mean? “—Ryan, don’t walk down that path. You know nothing about my family.”
“Except that he found out she was cheating on him and killed her.”
“Get out of my house.”
“No.”
“Get the fuck out of my house!”
My hand sprang free of the sling, and I pushed him with every ounce of power I had left. Unfortunately, in my anger, I had forgotten about the gaping hole in my arm. Flexing the muscles to push Ryan away shot a blinding pain through my entire body. I screamed and fell to the floor, bouncing on the wood beneath me.
He was right on top of me, beseeching me to calm down, to let him help me. I couldn’t. I didn’t want to see his face. I had no idea what lies they had been spreading at his club, but I was the one with the memory. I was the one who saw the tattoo. I was the one who witnessed my mother’s murder.
“Ryan, go away. I don’t want you here.”
“Well, I don’t give shit. I’m not leaving.”
“Why are you so goddam stubborn?” I was screaming through my pain. Getting shot was numbing, it all happened in slow motion. This was different. I felt as though time was racing, and I could hear my blood swishing in my head.
He lifted up my shirtsleeve and started adjusting my bandage.
“What are you doing?”
“Checking to make sure your little stunt didn’t rip your stitches out.”
“Oh.”
I took a deep breath. I hadn’t thought about that. Another trip to the emergency room would be just what I needed to complete this horrific night.
“You’re fine. Come here.” He lifted me to a seated position and helped shift my sling.
“I’m sorry for pushing you.” I said.
“Sorry because you hurt yourself in the process?”
“Mostly.”
“I might have deserved it. Are you calm now?”
“More so than before.”
“I’ll take it.” He took a deep breath. “Why were you at my match tonight, Grace?”
“The truth?”
“Only.”
“To protect you.”
He laughed a little too loudly, but I followed with the chain of events explained to me by my father. It was all a complete misunderstanding, and it was about to cause a war.
“Think we can stop this from getting any worse?” I questioned.
“Are you suggesting we come clean to our families about our…relationship?”
“Think we can find a different route?”
He lightly brushed my hair from my face and kissed my lips.
“I’m going to clean up the mess I made.”
“Did you find anything?”
“No. Are you hiding anything?”
I gave him a sly smile. Nothing can stay hidden for long.
I stopped him with my next thought. “Ryan, after you figured out who I was, and thought that I had deceived you, why did you still take me to the hospital?”
He stopped for a second and looked at me. “I don’t know.”
At least he was honest.
Ryan
I had made quite a mess of her place, but I was so angry after leaving the hospital, in my head it was the only solution. I wanted to destroy something of hers, just as she had destroyed something of mine: my family’s clubhouse. I don’t know what I expected to find, but I thought I must’ve slipped up at some point and gave her crucial information about our intentional escapades. Maybe she’d written something down, planning on passing the information along after I had left.
But I had found nothing, and now I was paying the price for my raid. But what was I even doing there? How much was I willing to sacrifice for this girl that I had only met a week ago? And could I really trust what she’d told me? And why did it matter? My loyalty should be to my family. This was never going to work; why was I wasting my time?
I replaced the couch cushions, examining the last piece of my puzzle. Everything was put back in its place, and it was time to put me back in mine. I had to break things off with Grace. She would certainly understand, and most likely agree with my reasoning. Plus, no matter what, my Pops was right. If her father found out about us, we’d both be in for something awful.
I made my way through her apartment and back into her room. She was lying on the floor; in the same place I left her. She looked so peaceful sleeping there that I really didn’t want to disturb her. I knelt down beside her, and her eyes fluttered.
“Hey.” Her voice was quiet, weak.
“Hey, you comfy?”
“It’s not so bad. Plus, I tried getting up, but I really didn’t have the energy.”
“Do you want me to move you to the bed?”
“No. I’m kind of okay with this right now. Lay with me?”
“Right here?”
“Yeah.”
I couldn’t say ‘no’ to her, nor did I want to. I lowered myself to the floor, resting my head on my forearm. “You’re right. It’s not so bad.”
“See, I never would’ve discovered this if I hadn’t been shot.”
“Look at you, finding the silver lining.”
“I’m not usual
ly this optimistic. Maybe I should keep on these pain meds.”
“Speaking of pessimism…”
“I was speaking of optimism. Why are you trying to bring me down?”
How were we so comfortable with each other? At any point, either of us could snap, speeding up the outbreak of this inevitable war between us, and yet, we were lying on the hard ground, talking about absolutely nothing.
I touched her cheek with my thumb, and her eyes closed as she leaned into my hand. She blinked back open and bit her lip.
“Okay, give it to me.”
“Grace, don’t.”
“I get it, Ryan. This isn’t going to work. I knew that from the very beginning. We were born to hate each other.”
I knew it had to be said, but the sound of those words made my ears ring. She was too strong for my liking. I didn’t want her to be rational. I wanted her to be yelling at me again.
“Can you get angry, and tell me that I’m a jerk who only thinks about himself? This breakup is way too easy for you.”
“But you’re not. You’ve been so amazing to me tonight, even though I know you still don’t trust me.”
“I do.”
“Stop it. Do you know how long I considered the possibility that you knew who I was the whole time? That you were sent to find me and seduce me to gain my trust? It wasn’t until the look you gave me when that man said my name that I realized you had no idea.”
“I didn’t.”
“I know. And yet you still took care of me. You’re a better person than you give yourself credit for, Ryan. And if you want me to be all sappy about us, it really does pain me to end this.”
I wasn’t one for words, so she was clearly carrying this finale of ours, but I wanted to show her that I felt the same way. I placed my hand on her hip and drew my body closer to hers. She could express her feelings verbally, but mine would need to be physical. I stared into her eyes and ran my hand up and down her back, reminding myself of the curves I had only earlier washed. Her voiced purred at my touch, and I inched my hips forward, willing our bodies to touch one final time.
“Just once more.” I pled, and without permission stole her lips with mine. I didn’t want to hurt her, but a kiss was not enough. It had been such a long night, and I needed a release. I needed her to give that to me. I pulled her on top of me, trying to ignore her little cries of pain at each movement, but it was too much to overlook.
“I’m hurting you.” I pulled away.
“No. I’m fine.”
“You’re lying to me.”
“I don’t care; we’re doing this.”
There was no saying ‘no’ to Grace. I grabbed her shorts and threw them down her bare legs, finding her lips with my teeth and her warmth with my needing hand. She moaned, causing her tongue to vibrate in my mouth. I needed more. I needed to be inside. Grace pulled the string on my shorts and started to struggle, freeing me from the fabric.
“Okay, this needs to go.” She lifted her sling over her head, dropping her arm to her side.
“Grace, no.”
“Dammit, I have two hands, and I will use them.”
I was not winning this argument. She whined as she pulled off my shorts, but refused any help I offered. She ripped off her shirt, then mine, and placed herself directly over me.
My feelings of longing far outweighed the torture I suffered looking at her bandaged, bruised, and naked body. Still, I felt a twinge of pain for her as I pushed into her lust. We both sighed, accepting one another. Grace slid up and down, allowing her body to take over the movements. Her face cringed at every pass, and I knew she must be hurting. I slowly lowered her chest to mine, pushing my hips forward and forcing myself to stay inside of her. I rocked back and forth, holding her body in place. She rested her head on my shoulder and moaned into my neck. I felt so close to her. I felt compassion for her. I felt an intimacy I had never before experienced, with anyone.
Why was I going to let this end? I hugged her close to me and flipped her on her back, planking over top of her. My hips continued their motion.
“Is this okay?”
“Yes.”
“Can you wrap your legs around me?”
She did as I requested, opening her hips to me and allowing me to push further. She was surrounding me, welcoming me, taking me in like I wanted to be taken. I pushed fast and retracted slow. I wanted to feel all of her. We answered each other’s screams, escalating with each thrust. Her pleasure was overcoming her pain as her movements grew, matching mine. We gave a final attack and were motionless for a second, unable to move from our combined liberation.
I collapsed next to her, both of our chests rising and falling together and our cries slowly dying as one. I looked up at her ceiling, not sure of what to say next. But I didn’t need to say anything. Her hand found mine, and our fingers interlaced. Of course I trusted her. How could I not?
I turned my head to give her my assurance, when I heard the faint sound of a door creak open in the darkened living room.
“Grace, I think someone just came into your apartment.”
She stared at me, fearfully. “Shit.”
Grace
I had completely forgotten that my father had promised to send me a prospect for protection. I seemed to be completely forgetting a lot of things lately. I’d love to blame it on the concussion, but I had a feeling a good amount of my memory glitches had to do with Ryan. I was completely consumed by him. I worried about him, I wondered what he was thinking, and I wanted to be touching him at all times. It all kind of sucked. I was so good at being independent. When did this need to please him become a thing?
“Hide.” I warned as I threw his clothes at him.
“You’re kidding me, right? I’m going out there. You stay here.”
“No, Ryan.” I was attempting to redress and stall him at the same time. “This is a prospect. My father didn’t trust that I could protect myself.”
“He has a point.” He eyed my bruises as he scolded me.
“Shut up and help me.” He grabbed my sling and neatly wrapped my arm in its confines. “Now hide.”
I ran out of the room, closing the door behind me. The light was on, and I feared whom I would find as I rounded the hallway corner and peered at the couch.
“Oh my good Lord, what the hell did you get yourself into?”
“Aunt Kathryn?” It was such a relief. I ran to her, well, as much as I could run, and plopped down on the couch. “What are you doing here?”
“Your father sent me.”
“Dad sent you?”
She lowered her eyes to me and smirked. “Well no, he wanted to send that body builder boy with the tattoo of a leopard on his bicep, but I told him to cool it with the crazy. I knew you had a little secret friend, and I also knew that sending in Mr. Muscles might put an end to your happy tête-à-tête.”
“Aunt Kathryn, that’s over.”
“Why do you try to lie to me? Your face is flushed, you’re radiating heat, and I can practically hear your heartbeat. Is he here now? I want to meet him.”
“No, we actually just broke it off.”
“To hell you did.”
Even though I trusted Aunt Kathryn with my life, there was no way she would condone my relationship with Ryan: if there still was a relationship. I wasn’t quite sure how that ending played out. I needed to change the subject.
“How did you convince Dad to let you come instead?”
“I told him you’d spend the whole time hiding from the leopard that you’d probably find yourself in even more trouble, though, by the looks of you, I don’t think that would be possible. What the hell happened to you, baby girl?”
“Big misunderstanding. I was stupid and tried to follow the boys.”
“And you got yourself shot? Just so you know, I tried to give you the benefit of the doubt. I said you were a big girl and could protect yourself. But then your daddy bought me a new car, so I promised him I’d come spy on you. And I’m glad I did. You
’re a mess!”
“It’s not as bad as it looks.”
“Don’t try to play this off. How do you expect to ever find yourself out from under his wing if you’re going around getting yourself shot? And what’s this thing on your forehead? It’s not becoming.”
“I think I hit a rock or something? I have a concussion.”
“Oh sweet Jesus, I can’t believe he didn’t drag you home by your ankles. That man is getting soft.”
She was right. Maybe I didn’t deserve to be on my own. What twenty-three year old college student gets themselves shot in the arm?
“I’m glad you’re here.”
“More lies. I know something was going on back there when I walked in. This is an apartment; the walls are paper thin.”
“Oh my God, you’re embarrassing me. But I’m serious. It’s over.”
“Mm hmm,” she teased, “this man must be a fucking rock star if you’re willing to bend over with all this crap going on.”
“It just kind of… happened. We were saying goodbye.”
“I need to start hanging out with men from your generation. Goodbyes in my world are nothing more than a slap on the ass.”
I shook my head at her, but she was right: Ryan was something of a rock star.
“But seriously, Gracie, does this boy know what happened? I mean does he know where the bandages came from?”
We were heading down a road that was making me very uncomfortable. “Yes.”
“And he knows who you are? Like who your family is?”
“Uh huh.” I tested.
“And then you’re telling me you broke up with him? Your father said the only reason he allowed you to stay here was because none of the Cupids knew where you lived. If this boy is angry enough, who’s to say he won’t get drunk one night and sell you out?”
I’d dug a hole from which I had no idea how to climb out. She was definitely smart. I know Ryan would never tell anyone about our little tryst, but what if someone followed him and found out about us that way? What if they already knew where I lived and they were waiting for the right moment to pounce? Why did I feel as though nothing I was doing would require me to take a step back and look at the big picture? I could be in some serious danger right about now. If they found out about us, they might think Ryan was a mole. They might think I was leaking information to my father. I was so addicted to my lust that I refused to recognize the implications. If this war was as serious as I believed it was going to be, we may not live through it.
Blood of Cupids Page 10
